Electrochromic (EC) devices typically comprise a multilayer stack including (a) at least one electrochromic material, that changes its optical properties, such as visible light transmitted through the layer, in response to the application of an electrical potential, (b) an ion conductor (IC), which allows ions (e.g. Li+) to move through it, into and out from the electrochromic material to cause the optical property change, while insulating against electrical shorting, and (c) transparent conductor layers (e.g. transparent conducting oxides or TCOs), over which an electrical potential is applied. In some cases, the electric potential is applied from opposing edges of an electrochromic device and across the viewable area of the device. The transparent conductor layers are designed to have relatively high electronic conductances. Electrochromic devices may have more than the above-described layers, e.g., ion storage layers that color, or not.
Due to the physics of the device operation, proper function of the electrochromic device depends upon many factors such as ion movement through the material layers, the electrical potential required to move the ions, the sheet resistance of the transparent conductor layers, and other factors. As the size of electrochromic devices increases, conventional techniques for driving electrochromic transitions fall short. For example, in conventional driving profiles, the device is driven carefully, at sufficiently low voltages so as not to damage the device by driving ions through it too hard, which slows the switching speed, or the device is operated at higher voltages to increase switching speed, but at the cost of premature degradation of the device.
What are needed are improved methods for driving electrochromic devices.